CHSRA, city of Gilroy enter into funding agreement for possible station

Written by Jenifer Nunez, assistant editor

The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) and the city of Gilroy have entered into a station-area funding agreement that will allow the city and CHSRA to initiate the planning process for a potential high-speed rail station in the downtown area of the city.

 

Gilroy Mayor Don Gage commended both CHSRA and the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (SCVTA) for their commitments to assisting Gilroy undertake this serious and important planning effort.

“The high-speed rail station will change the landscape of our downtown, just like the railroad did in the late 1800s,”Gage said. “We are very pleased to receive the financial and technical support of the CHSRA and SCVTA to properly design, plan and implement a station area that complements and enhances our downtown.”

The downtown site is one of two locations under consideration for a Gilroy high-speed rail station. As part of the agreement with CHSRA, the city of Gilroy will receive $750,000 in grants to explore options and seek public input for the design and development of a potential station in its downtown corridor. CHSRA will provide $600,000 and SCVTA will allocate an additional $150,000 to support the city’s station-area planning efforts. The city of Gilroy will contribute $80,000 to the station-area planning fund.

“CHSRA is excited to enter into this agreement with the city of Gilroy,” said Dan Richard, chair of the CHSRA Board of Directors. “We are looking forward to working with the city to create a vision for a future high-speed rail station that meets the needs of residents and stakeholders and to ensure that the future high-speed rail station will serve as an economic catalyst for the city.”

The station-area planning grant will provide funding as the city of Gilroy works to identify potential sites and develops conceptual designs for a high-speed station. The grant will also be used to support the city’s efforts to identify alternatives for station-area development, promote connectivity to regional transportation systems and conduct cost-analysis and evaluate financing options for a station.

 

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